Welcome to Emmanuel Episcopal Church

In Memoriam-Florence Avelene Ewing

    Long time Emmanuel Episcopal Church member Florence Ewing passed away peacefully on April 9 at Swedish Hospital Cherry Hill Campus (the old Providence Hospital) in Seattle. Florence was born in Wessington, South Dakota on November 30, 1916. She grew up as a farm girl on the family homestead in Wessington Springs, SD and after high school went to nursing school in Mitchell, SD. The family lost the farm to the dust bowl and moved to Illinois and Florence finished nursing school in 1937 and moved to Seattle in 1938 to join her sister. Her first nursing job was at Providence, then Maynard Hospital where she met Robert (Bob) Ewing who was also working there as a pre-medical student. Florence then went to work for Dr. Tucker near Green Lake in Seattle and in long walks around Green Lake fell in love with Bob. Bob saw World War Two coming and decided that to further his medical career he would enlist to be a corpsman in the Navy attached to the Marines in San Diego. Florence signed up with the Red Cross to go to support the troops on Corregidor in the Philippines. Bob wrote a letter to Florence listing all the reasons not to get married, but at the bottom of the letter said that if she’s like to get married to please come to San Diego. Florence got in a car and drove to San Diego and was married to Bob on May 3, 1941, a marriage that was to last over 50 years. Bob then went with the Marines to Iceland and later to Guadalcanal, and Florence got a job working for a doctor in San Diego. During the war Florence came back to Seattle to live with her sister in Ballard and work for Dr. Tucker. After the war in 1950 Bob and Florence bought the original Pearson Dairy farmhouse in the East Seattle area of Mercer Island and after their son Robert III was born in 1951 they moved permanently to the house where Florence lived for almost 58 years. Florence spent most of her nursing carrier working at Doctors Hospital in Seattle as a surgery nurse, floor nurse and head of ICU. In the early 1970’s she was asked to start and be the head of the Patient Care Services at Doctors Hospital that then became part of Swedish Hospital Patient Care Services when Doctors Hospital was merged into Swedish Hospital. She retired as the head of that department in 1985. She was involved with many organizations on Mercer Island over the years including the Orthopedic Guild, V.F.W., the Episcopal Church and helping with November voting at the old East Seattle School now Boy’s and Girl’s club. Florence gave kindness, compassion and love as a friend and mother to many people and animals. She was the ideal nurse who enjoyed helping people and was a wonderful resource for those who needed assistance as well as a source of medical information for her friends and relatives. Her knowledge was matched by her warmth and support in their times of need. She volunteered at Emmanuel Episcopal Church as chairman of pastoral care, as a member of the intercessory prayer group and for many years in the Emmanuel office. She was also a member of the choir. She will be greatly missed.

     Florence is survived by her son, Robert L. Ewing III of Mercer Island, her sisters Arta Sandstrom of Greenbank, WA and Barbara Van Arendonk of Kalamazoo, MI, her brothers Steven Johnson (Maxine) of Bellevue, Burton Johnson (Jackie) of Mercer Island, Herbert Johnson (Nita) of Cincinnati, OH, and sister-in-law Muriel Johnson of Spring Harbor, MI.  She is also survived by large numbers of other loving relatives and friends, many who looked upon her as their second mother. Florence was preceded in death by her beloved husband Bob who died in 1992 and brother Roger who passed in 2006.

     Remembrances can be made to the Salvation Army, Humane Society, Footloose Disabled Sailing, Emmanuel Episcopal Church of Mercer Island, or the V.F.W. Mercer Island.

In Memoriam-Robert Belden Gardner

Bob was born on July 26, 1929, in Salt Lake City, Utah and was raised by his parents Lowell and Carrie Gardner in Denver, Colorado---they adored him, he could do no wrong. He joined the US Navy following high school graduation in July, 1947. He held the rank of Electronics Technician 2^nd class until honorably discharged April, 1950 from San Diego, CA. He was then recalled January 3, 1951 and served on the vessels USS Bon Homme Richard and USS Chauncey and discharged from Great Lakes, Illinois in April, 1954. During this period he married Betty Deline (Rosenwald) in 1952. He taught at Lowry Air Force Base and then attended University of Colorado earning a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering in 1956. Together they brought three wonderful children into the world: Randal, Debra and Richard. He was very proud of his children. Bob is survived by his wife, Donna; sister, Carol Clark; first wife, Betty Rosenwald; sons, Randal (Cathy) & Richard; daughter, Debra (Peter); grandsons, Christopher, Michael, Benjamin & Graham; step-daughter, Teresa Lindbloom; step-daughter, Leisha Minich and her sons, Zachary, Austin & Logan.

In 1962 he moved his family to Mercer Island to work for Honeywell. His professional career included TRW; Oceanographic Institute of Washington, Seattle; University of Washington and ICON Telecommunications, where he retired in 1998. At this point his life began to show serious signs of dementia which frustrated and disturbed him greatly. He so missed his family and close friends, particularly missed playing golf with the members of Emmanuel and the Mill Creek Poor Man’s Golf Club. He was crushed when he felt he could no longer continue playing cards with his longtime friends of the Leviticus group. He enjoyed so much Cannon Beach, OR. where he vacationed yearly with his family and this continued throughout the 1980’s. There, he thrived on flying kites, had quite a collection, among his favorites was the “silver slug”. He stayed at the beach overlooking Haystack
Rock and barbequed endless oysters. He was a sports fan too, baseball, football, and golf was among his favorites. He went to Mariner and Seahawk games, and whenever possible watched the games on TV.

During his tenure at the University of Washington he married Donna in 1980. He worked as a Manager of Technical and Administrative Services in the Departments of Atmospheric Sciences and Civil Engineering. He willingly took on the huge responsibility of helping to raise a second family and accepted Donna’s daughters (Leisha, Kami, and Teresa), then 11, 9 and 9 years old. Over time he taught us how to be better people, always giving unconditional love and support. We constantly played bridge, some duplicate and got pretty good at it---he loved bidding NO TRUMP. He left the UW to pursue a different career in sales and marketing with a local telecommunications company. He met Leslie Cole of ALTCOM and was hired as their first employee and since then Les and Bob became longtime friends. Les hired Bob from another telecomm company when he was CEO of ICON. He traveled to many US states, had numerous golf meetings/tournaments and received many awards for sales, and, of course, for high-handicap golf! He never was very good at the game, but loved it nonetheless. He attempted to teach Donna a few things about golf so they could play the game together. They cruised to the Caribbean with a neighborhood group and the last big trip was to the Mediterranean when Donna retired in 2001. It was a thirty-day cruise to 9 countries---a wonderful experience and fantastic time, but unfortunately the last of his travels.  He made a few small trips to see our neighborhood friends, Doug and Sharon Holliker, in Green Valley, Arizona and to Santa Barbara, CA to visit lifetime friends, Doron and Eileen. This was the last of his travels as he knew it, but unfortunately only the beginning of a long and hard battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Our love and admiration for him will continue on in our hearts---he was the BEST in so many ways.

In Memoriam - Elizabeth "Betty" Shorett

Elizabeth Eddy Shorett

January 10, 1923-December 26, 2007

Betty Shorett died peacefully on Thursday, December 26^th at the age of 84.  A 57 – year resident of Mercer Island, she and husband John joyfully celebrated their 61^st wedding anniversary on August 30^th of 2007.  She was also blessed with an amazing network of friends, many loyal across decades.  They ranged from grade school, high school, and college friends who stayed together to neighbors and friends from each home, fellow salespeople from her days working at Fredrick & Nelson, couples met through husband John, members of Emmanuel Episcopal Church, and a Prayer Group spanning 50 years.  She inspired many in her long fight with Parkinson’s disease, maintaining her humor, wit, and wonderful smile. She will be best remembered for her genuine love of other people.

The daughter of Robert and Elizabeth Eddy, “Betty Ann” as she was called, was born in Yonkers, New York.  She is preceded in death by her parents and husband, John.  She is survived by her younger sister Jean Bray of Belmont, California, brother Bill Eddy of San Francisco, California, daughters Jean Shorett of Chevy Chase, Maryland, Dianne Harlow of Moraga, California, and Helen Shorett of Eugene, Oregon, and grandchildren Jennifer, Michael, and Stephen Harlow.

Betty grew up in Portland and Seattle, where she graduated from St. Nicholas School for Girls.  She entered Scripts College in 1941 and moved to the University of Washington where she first met John Shorett.  She completed her studies at the University of California, Berkeley in 1946. When her family moved to the Bay Area, friends suggested she look up John Shorett, then a soldier stationed at the Presidio.  It was good advice. They were married in 1946 and returned to Seattle.  The Shoretts moved to Mercer Island in 1950 when their family began to expand.  They were founding members of the Mercer Island Beach Club and attended Emmanuel Episcopal Church since its original location near the floating bridge.  Betty worked for 20 years in the bakery and delicacy department at the Bellevue Fredrick & Nelson department store.  She was a long-standing member of the Prayer Group, a marvelous band of life-enhancing ladies.

Betty relished adventure.  Growing up, she loved horseback riding, sailing and, snow skiing, to which she returned in her 50s.  She treasured a canoe paddle earned at Four Winds Camp for a demanding, long range canoe course. She had a flair for colorful fashion. She traveled to Italy, and took trips with husband John to Hawaii, New York, Pennsylvania Amish country, and historic Williamsburg, Virginia.  Her last years focused on fighting the insidious creep of Parkinson’s disease.  She rallied many times, and took comfort in the resolute support and love of her friends.  But her greatest love was her devoted husband John, their daughters, and grandchildren.        

In Memoriam ~ Jean "Stormy" Wilson

Former Seattle and Spokane resident, Jean Wilson, passed away peacefully in her sleep in Locust Valley, NY, on December 12, 2007. Francis Jean was born April 1, 1922, in Spokane, WA to Hanford W. and Nelle (Mustain) Fairweather, Jr. She was the grand-daughter of Washington pioneer Hanford W. Fairweather, a member of the State Constitution Convention in 1889 and the first state Senator from Douglas County, Washington. Jean attended the Annie Wright Seminary in Tacoma, WA, graduating in 1940. Jean was a member of the University of Washington class of 1944 and a member of the Gamma Phi Beta Sorority. She married John "Jack" Charles Wilson, Jr. January 12, 1944 and in their 53 years together they lived in Seattle, Mercer Island, San Francisco Bay area and New York. In 1986, Jean served as special assistant to NY Governor Mario Cuomo to establish addiction services for the community. She was also the subject of a lengthy article in the New York Times Sunday Magazine in 1987. In Seattle, Jean was a life long member of the Olive Terry Guild for Seattle’s Children’s Orthopedic Hospital. The Episcopal Church was central to her life and she served on many committees, most recently at Emmanuel Episcopal Church on Mercer Island. She loved golf and was a member of the Mercer Island Seniors Golf Group. Jean was also an avid bridge player. Jean was preceded in death by her husband, John Wilson, on Christmas Day 1997 and eldest son, Peter John Wilson, in 1988. She is survived by son John Hanford Wilson and his wife, Janice Roberts, grandchildren Courtney 29, James 25 and Kieran 23, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida; son William Frederick Wilson and his wife Catherine Mary Chaffey, grandsons Christopher 28 and Stephen 25 of Whidbey Island, WA; and daughter Carol Anne (Wilson) Trauernicht and her husband John Parker Trauernicht, grandsons Clayton 30 and William 20 of Locust Valley, NY. A memorial service will be held Friday, January 4, 11 a.m., at Emmanuel Episcopal Church, 4400 86th Ave SE, Mercer Island, WA. In lieu of flowers, the family asks remembrances be given to the Olive Terry Guild, Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center, Seattle.

In Memoriam Brian Brauninger

Brian Brauninger, a long time member of Emmanuel who served as usher, died on Saturday, January 13th of a heart attack. 

The memorial service will be held  February 3 at 2:00 PM followed by a reception in the Parish Hall.

Andy created www.brianbrauninger.com  for anyone to share memories, photos, or stories of Brian.  Our condolences to Elizabeth and Andy and the Brauninger family. May light perpetual shine upon him.

In Memoriam ~ Laura Harvey 1915-2006

Laura Spencer Harvey passed away peacefully, after a short illneess, at her home on Saturday May 6, surrounded by her family. Our condolences to the Harvey family. A memorial service will be held on Thursday, May 11th at 1:00 PM at Emmanuel. Memorials may be made in Laura's name to Children's Hospital, the Burke Museum at the University of Washington or Emmanuel Episcopal Church. ~May light perpetual shine upon her.